There is scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness in massage, but it is also an art form, most schools teach it as an art form. The teachers at the school I went to, Arizona School of Massage Therapy, told me more than once that they do not teach massage, they teach massage stokes. There is a creative process that goes with doing this kind of work. Even in the most regimented specific modalities, we “create our own subjective ‘style’ of client centered bodywork” (Massage Therapy 6). We listen to our clients, interpret their needs, and then put the strokes together that create the massage.
In the western world the first formalized massage modality was born in Sweden, Swedish massage. This world famous massage has inspired many different kinds of massage including Russian Sports Massage. A Russian, Per Henrik Ling, went to Sweden and discovered massage in 1860. He brought it home, but was only taught to medical professionals and used to treat the ill. In 1882 a physician named Zabludovsky, wrote, “The principals of massage on healthy people” (Russian Sports Massage 6). Zabludovsky, was scoffed at, as the mind set at that time was that massage was only for sick people. Not until 1918 was massage accepted in Russia for being for people of good health. It took that long to break down peoples ideas about massage and wellness.
The strokes used in Russian massage were researched in detail beginning in 1944. New stokes and protocols were developed with an understanding of what massage could increase, like circulation, or decrease, like edema, in the human body. In the 60s Russian athletes were winning all the gold medals at the Olympics. The one thing they had that no other country was providing their athletes was massage. Today all Russian professions that work with Human Anatomy and Physiology, including doctors, coaches, nurses, trainers, and physiotherapists must take massage courses as part of their training. Like most Eastern cultures, in Russia, massage have been integrated into all aspects of health and wellness.
In the eastern world, in times before recorded history healing touch modalities began in China and Egypt, in the forms of what we now call reflexology and acupressure. There are hieroglyphics depicting physicians healing their patients noting the promise to bring cure with no pain. It is said the Buddha had a companion that administered what we now call Thai Yoga Massage. There are maps of feet in both Asia and Egypt showing how specific parts of the feet bring intentional healing to internal organs. Chinese, Japanese, Indians, Russians, and Egyptians all worked on feet to promote good health (Reflexology 4-8).
Acupressure is a 5000 year old result of Taoists and ancient Chinese Medicine. There are energy meridians that run all though our bodies. Careful manipulation of points on these energy highways cause healing reflexes to internal organs. There is a balance of the elements in all that is done in this healing culture. The thought process is different then our western culture, where medicine is only a few hundred years old. In the west they seek to treat the symptoms, in the East they seek to treat the imbalance that is causing the symptom. Some sometimes a cough is wet, sometimes it is dry. In Chinese medicine, it is important to know the difference as a good treatment for one would aggravate the other. A massage therapist that practices acupressure, it is important to have a working knowledge of all parts of Chinese medicine. The finger came before the needle (Acupressure 1-136).
The effects of massage through out history is why it has grown world wide with more than 150 modalities. There are people that talk a much about things they do not know much about, due to their own personal bias and lack of experience. “...massage therapy schools, publications, and professional groups are an integral part of the deception. There is no evidence-based reason to believe that massage can influence the course of any disease” (Barrett). These same people insistently marginalize centuries old healing methods. The audacity of such accusations are obviously made by people that make up their minds before doing adequate research. Their arguments seem solely basted in emotional based belief instead of real fact. I would advise them to start researching oncology massage and reefer to education based hospitals like Mayo. There are providing loads of research that makes the doctors at Quack Watch look like the Quacks.
In western medicine, especially in our United States of America culture, many medical professionals scoff at the legitimacy and effectiveness of massage. However there is one kind of massage that has gained acceptance over the rest known as Trigger Point Therapy, or Myofascial Trigger Point. Dr. Janet G. Travell was a highly respected physician that even held a position in the White House during the Kennedy years. Her life was dedicated to brining relief to patients suffering from myofascial pain syndrome. A trigger point is trapped inflammation in the fascial and muscular tissues of the body. They can cause Headaches, Piriformas Syndrome, Carpel Tunnel Syndrome, Fibrosis, and Fibromyalgia Syndrome, to name a few. They contribute to a restriction in range of motion and reefer pain local and distant areas. Pain from an active trigger point can be completely debilitating, where as an inactive one may be unnoticeable but cause slight stiffness, distortion in posture, or complete lack of motion like frozen shoulder.
Amazingly enough, trigger points can be cause by many different things. Work related stress, chronic illness, bad shoes, dehydration, poor diet, or stress from your environment, emotional or mental. Trigger points can be the consequence of an accident from years ago or a recent occurrence (Trigger Point Therapy 5-15).
The root of Cranial Sacral Therapy begins in the late 1800s with an osteopath by the name of, William Sutherland, also known as, Bone Head Bill. In Bill’s studies, he found that the structure in the sutures. Research by the Upledger Institute has show by inhibiting movement on different bones in the scull causes “specific disfunction in the head and body” (Cranial Sacral Therapy 7). Anywhere you find elastin and cartilage in the body, no matter how slight, there is movement. This movement is caused by the cranial fluid and the movement in the sacrum is part of that rhythm. When I have applied this therapy. I have seen it relieve chronic pain, headaches, TMJ disorder, emotional trauma, stress related dysfunctions, and arthritis pain. Auditory problems, colic, inner ear problems, learning and behavioral disorders in infants and children are areas where Cranial Sacral Therapy can be useful.
There is so much massage can do. From helping you heal broken bones, to maintaining good digestion. I have seem improvements that have astounded me, improved posture, healing frozen shoulder, and decreased depression and anxiety. Massage definitely has a seat at the table of healing in my world. It is the first line of defense and the best antidote for my every day ills. I have seen it change lives as it did mine, and it continues to inspire me. Massage therapists heal the world, one body at a time. Most people do not understand nor appreciate that massage is strenuous work for the therapist.
From my own experience it is more enjoyable to get a massage form someone that is well rounded in their massage education with western and eastern modalities. I do keep my mind open to new massage experiences. I have always strived to be informed and advance my technique. Getting massage from someone new is a great way to enrich the massage I give. Sometimes I get something completely new and sometimes I rediscover something I used to use. No matter how much I learn, I find there is always more that I can learn. All in all, massage has been some of the best healing I have ever received or given.
Works Cited
Acupressure. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah College of Massage Therapy, 2003. Print.Barrett, Stephen. "Massage Therapy." Massage Therapy: Riddled with Quackery.Boulder Information Services, 06 Mar. 2006. Web. 20 Nov. 2010.
Cranial Sacral Therapy. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah College of Massage Therapy, 2004. Print.
Massage Therapy. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah College of Massage Therapy, 2004. Print.
Reflexology. Utah: Utah College of Massage Therapy, 2004. Print.
Russian Sports Massage. Utah: Utah College of Massage Therapy, 2004. Print.
Trigger Point Therapy. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah College of Massage Therapy, 2006. Print.
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